Azure Mountain
Location: Waverly, New York
Mileage: 2.14 Miles
Elevation Gain: 908 Feet
Trail(s) Used: Azure Mountain Trail
Views: 360 from Fire Tower Cab, Ledge near summit of Azure Mountain
Difficulty: Moderate/Hard
Hiking List(s): Fire Tower Challenge (Adirondack/Catskills), Adirondack Blue Challenge, Adirondacks 29er Challenge
The final fire tower hike of the day was by far the toughest and steepest of the three. The drive over was more of the same, with showers and rain accompanying us to the parking area off Blue Mountain Road. When we arrived, the lot was empty, and the rain let up for most of the hike. We were ready to hit the trail as soon as we parked, so off we went.
Azure Mountain is #22 on the Fire Towe Challenge (Adirondack/Catskills), #8 on the Adirondack Blue Challenge and #7 on the Adirondack 29er Junior Peaks lists.
Signs at the trailhead parking lot warn about aggressive American goshawks in the area.
The Azure Mountain Trail begins with a flat stretch, but it quickly picks up intensity before long.
At the trailhead kiosk on the Azure Mountain Trail, we always make sure to sign in, just in case.
Perhaps the remains of a fireplace from some kind of structure along the Azure Mountain Trail, possibly the site where the fire warden’s cabin once stood?
Amy made her way along the Azure Mountain Trail, enjoying a flat stretch of the path.
A low blanket of clouds gave the steep Azure Mountain Trail a dreamy, almost otherworldly feel during the hike.
The trail was steep, incredibly steep, all the way to the summit plateau of Azure Mountain. It felt like an endless climb straight up.
At the summit of Azure Mountain, which stands at 2,516 feet, there’s a 35-foot steel fire tower.
I came across the summit marker for Azure Mountain today, and it was the only one I found.
A panoramic view unfolds from the ledges just below Azure Mountain’s summit.
From the fire tower cab on Azure Mountain, the 360-degree views were breathtaking. It was windy and rainy at the time, but the sun came out as we made our way down.
The Azure Mountain Fire Tower still has its Osborne Fire Finder, a device used to pinpoint fires from the tower.
We didn’t linger at the summit due to light rain and windy conditions. As usual, just as we started heading down, the weather gods decided to let the sun shine. We passed one other couple going up and hoped they enjoyed a better view than we did.
It was definitely our last hike of the day—three peaks in total, about eight miles of hiking, and roughly 1,800 feet of elevation gain. Not too shabby. While the weather was a mixed bag, we were lucky it didn’t pour or turn into a thunderstorm during our trek.
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